Overseas organisations that receive Australian aid are now free to
vilify the Government without fear their funding will be cut off.

The parliamentary secretary for development assistance, Bob McMullan,
confirmed the shift in policy, saying the Howard government was wrong to
punish not-for-profit groups that criticised Australia.

"I've made it clear to NGOs in Australia, to AusAID and around the
region that people are entitled to criticise us," he said at an
international anti-corruption forum in Canberra.

"They might have to live with the fact that we'll criticise them
right back and have a debate, but we will not penalise people for speaking
out."

East Timorese aid groups were outraged in 2005 when former foreign
minister Alexander Downer stripped a small human rights organisation,
Forum Tau Matan, of a $65,830 grant.

AusAID officials later told the Senate the government broke the
organisation's contract because it had criticised Australia's hardline
negotiations with East Timor over oil and natural gas reserves in the
Timor Sea.

Forum Tau Matan was among 13 organisations that signed a petition which
demanded Australia respect international law and stop
"belittling" East Timor.

Two years after AusAID broke the contract, the organisation rejected a
$US20,000 ($A26,000) World Bank grant because some of the money came from
Australia.But Mr McMullan condemned the way the former government had
treated the organisation.

"We think civil society needs to be fearless," he said.
"They will not have their funds cut for simply criticising the
Australian Government."